Music History on January 21

"Jenufa"

1904 Leos Janacek's opera "Jenufa" premieres in Brno

  • 1927 1st national opera broadcast from a US opera house (Faust, Chicago)

"One O'Clock Jump"

1942 Count Basie records the music single and Jazz standard "One O'Clock Jump"

  • 1946 "Nellie Bly" opens at Adelphi Theater NYC for 16 performances
  • 1947 "Sweethearts" opens at Shubert Theater NYC for 288 performances

Honegger's 4th Symphony

1947 Arthur Honegger's 4th Symphony premieres in Basel, Switzerland

  • 1950 "Lend an Ear" closes at National Theater NYC after 460 performances

"Comedy in Music"

1956 Victor Borge's one-man show "Comedy in Music" closes at John Golden Theatre, NYC; runs for 849 performances, a Guinness world record

  • 1961 "Conquering Hero" closes at ANTA Theater NYC after 8 performances
  • 1961 Francis Poulenc's "Gloria" premieres in Boston< Massachusetts by Boston Symphony and Chorus Pro Musica under conductor Charles Münch
  • 1981 "Shakespeare's Cabaret" opens at Bijou Theater New York City for 54 performances
  • 1982 "Little Me" opens at Eugene O'Neill Theater NYC for 36 performances
  • 1983 First supertitles for a live opera performance: "Elektra" at Canadian Opera Company, English titles by Sonya Friedman

Norman Sings at Inauguration

1985 Jessye Norman sings "Simple Gifts" at the second inauguration of US President Ronald Reagan in Washington, D. C.

B.B. King Donates Records

1987 B.B. King donates his 7,000 record collection to the University of Mississippi

Second Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

1987 Second Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees: The Coasters; Eddie Cochran; Bo Diddley; Aretha Franklin; Marvin Gaye; Bill Haley; B.B. King; Clyde McPhatter; Ricky Nelson; Roy Orbison; Carl Perkins; Smokey Robinson; Joe Turner; Muddy Waters; Jackie Wilson; Louis Jordan; T-Bone Walker; Hank Williams; Leonard Chess; Ahmet Ertegun; Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller; and Jerry Wexler

Fela Kuti Arrested

1993 Nigerian singer Fela Kuti arrested on suspicion of murder